Abstract: A device for adjusting the plate or blanket cylinders in a rotary printing press automatically moves the cylinders to predetermined positions for clamping or unclamping the plate or blanket. A memory stores predetermined set values for cylinder position, which are addressed by a triggering unit in response to operation selections. An angle coder senses the actual value of the cylinder position which is compared to the set values obtained from the memory to generate a control signal for adjusting a cylinder drive motor. In a preferred embodiment, the memory also stores the direction for rotating the cylinders as well as a number of cylinder movement steps for plate and blanket clamping and unclamping sequences.

Abstract: A device for indicating electrically measurable positions or adjustments of individual units required for the printing process, and displaying the positions or adjustments in the form of lines, segments or areas on a large-area indicating instrument. The actual values of the respective positions or adjustments of different units are freely selectable and can be represented on the indicating instrument pictorally and/or symbolically. A cathode-ray tube, LED-matrix or LCD-matrix, for example, can be used as indicating instruments.

Abstract: An automatic ink feed control for a printing machine. Several ink-dosing elements are arranged across the width of the printing machine for dosing the application of ink to a printing plate, and these ink-dosing elements are individually adjustable by an adjusting device. The ink density of several control areas on the printed material is measured by a scanning measuring device, and a computer control compares these measured ink densities to desired ink densities in order to effect control of the adjustment of the ink-dosing elements by the adjusting device.

Abstract: An ink metering system for a printing press for metering ink to individual column positions on a printing plate in which the fountain blade is formed in individual sections having power actuators to establish film-forming gaps at corresponding positions. Linear follow-up potentiometers are provided having their slides respectively coupled to the blade sections so that when the potentiometers are connected to a source of reference voltage, and the sections initially adjusted, the slider voltage provides a direct indication of the width of the gap. To change the setting over the entire width of the blade, a variable voltage supply is provided with a control for shifting the voltage from reference level to a calibrated level of offset voltage, on one side or the other of the reference, to bring about a percentage change in voltage at each of the adjustable blade sections.

Abstract: A device for measuring ink film thickness in the inking system of a printing press which includes a pair of hollow transparent rollers, at least one of which is resilient so that when the rollers are in rolling engagement with one another and with an ink-carrying roller in the press, there is a longitudinally extending ribbon-like area of engagement between them through which an enclosed film of ink is fed in a thickness which varies in accordance with the thickness of the ink film in the press. A longitudinally extensive light projector in one of the rollers cooperates with a correspondingly dimensioned light collector in the other, the collector being coupled to a photocell having an output indicator. The projector and collector are both in the form of optical cross section transformers, the projector being coupled fiber-optically to an external light source. A filter assembly is interposed in the light path manually switchable for application, to the film, of light of complementary color.